Weight Loss News and Research

Latest Weight Loss News and Research

VIVUS submits briefing document to FDA in effort to secure regulatory approval for QNEXA

VIVUS, Inc. today announced that the company, as part of its continuing effort to secure regulatory approval for QNEXA® in the U.S., submitted a briefing document to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designed to address items in the FDA's Complete Response Letter (CRL), issued on October 28, 2010. The company also announced that the Endocrine and Metabolic Division of the FDA has granted VIVUS a meeting in the second half of January 2011 to discuss the content of the proposed resubmission.

14 Dec 2010

Clinical trial investigates pomalidomide in only U.S. study for multiple myeloma

Multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer in which malignant plasma cells are overproduced in the bone marrow, has led to an estimated 20,000 new diagnoses and 11,000 deaths in 2010. Patients with the disease, who have already failed previous treatments, may be considered for a currently enrolling Phase II study, examining a unique drug combination.

14 Dec 2010

With The CarbLovers Diet, eating carbohydrates foods is the only way to lose weight

Who would have thought you could eat your favorite carbohydrate-rich foods and still lose weight? If your New Year's resolution is to lose weight in 2011, Health's bestselling book, The CarbLovers Diet by Ellen Kunes (Editor-in-Chief, Health) and Frances Largeman-Roth, RD (Senior Food & Nutrition Editor, Health), may be the solution.

14 Dec 2010

Soda taxes – would they do any good?

According to new research from Duke-National University of Singapore (NUS) Graduate Medical School imposing higher taxes on sodas and other sweetened drinks would lead to only minimal weight loss among most people and would have no effect on weight among consumers in the highest and lowest income groups.

13 Dec 2010

Researchers conduct trial to study obesity-related respiratory limitations on weight loss

Tamara Ritchie lost 25 pounds in 12 weeks without breaking a sweat. She was just following doctors' orders.

13 Dec 2010

Roark affiliates acquire Atkins Nutritionals

Roark Capital Group, an Atlanta-based private equity firm, announced today that its affiliates have acquired Atkins Nutritionals, a leading international weight control and nutrition brand. Atkins' management team, led by CEO Monty Sharma, will remain with the business and invested alongside Roark Capital in the transaction. Terms of the transaction were not released.

10 Dec 2010

North Castle completes sale of Atkins

North Castle Partners, a leading investor in small-cap consumer companies focused on health, wellness and active living, announced today that the firm and its co-investors have completed the sale of Atkins Nutritional Holdings, Inc..

10 Dec 2010

Depression treatment may help obese women to lose weight

The new study, which appears in the November/December issue of the journal General Hospital Psychiatry, cites past surveys that show having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more — classified as obese — increases a person's risk of depression by 50 percent to 150 percent.

10 Dec 2010

PharmaDirections congratulates Orexigen on FDA Advisory approval for Contrave

PharmaDirections congratulates Orexigen Therapeutics on achieving FDA Advisory Board approval for their anti-obesity drug Contrave™. PharmaDirections is proud to have been Orexigen's pharmaceutical development partner and to have developed and produced the first Contrave™ product to undergo full clinical development.

10 Dec 2010

Biovex announces OncoVEXGM-CSF Phase 3 study for head and neck cancer

BioVex Inc, a company developing next generation biologics for the treatment and prevention of cancer and infectious disease, announced today that a Phase 3 pivotal study with OncoVEXGM-CSF for the first line treatment of patients with locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head & neck has commenced.

10 Dec 2010

Report shows hospitalizations for eating disorders in children increase at an alarming rate

A recent report published by the American Academy of Pediatrics shows hospitalizations for eating disorders in children under 12 increased 119 percent between 1999 and 2006. "This is an alarming trend because small children develop their foundation of self worth and body worth in their early years (birth to five years old)," said Dr. Kimberly Dennis, medical director at Timberline Knolls Residential Treatment Center.

10 Dec 2010

Divorce: men get fitter women fatter!

Divorce is a stressful experience but according to a new study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, it can do good to men’s fitness. Women, on the other hand, are likely to become less healthy.

9 Dec 2010

Researchers to address HRQOL issues for pediatric patients with IBD at annual conference

The management of children with inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis has evolved significantly over the past decade. With a surge of pediatric research in the field, quality of life has become an important focus of study, as indicated by the number of related abstracts that will be presented at the 2010 Advances in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation's Clinical & Research Conference beginning tomorrow in Hollywood, Florida.

9 Dec 2010

Dietitians prefer olive oil as food oil of choice

A newly released survey of dietitians, which examines their current perspectives regarding various dietary fats and oils, reveals a strong preference for olive oil as the food oil of choice even for individuals on a diet. Canola oil was the second choice, while other oils—safflower, soybean, peanut, corn and flax—trailed far behind.

9 Dec 2010

TOS, OAC call on FDA to address urgent need for obesity treatments

The Obesity Society (TOS) and the Obesity Action Coalition (OAC) today called on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to consider the urgent need for more tools to address the obesity epidemic facing more than 93 million Americans as they convene an advisory panel to review a new treatment for obesity.

8 Dec 2010

Overeating and drinking at holiday parties could affect those unaware of type 2 diabetes

For most people, overeating and drinking at holiday parties will just result in weight gain. However, for millions of others who do not know they have type 2 diabetes, it could mean something much more serious.

8 Dec 2010

Med-Vision offers steps to maintain weight during holidays

Health and wellness strategists at Med-Vision, LLC offer simple steps to avoid holiday weight gain during the whirlwind of to-dos and tasty temptations.

8 Dec 2010

NIH awards Scripps Research $2.35M to study new treatment for obesity

The Scripps Research Institute has been awarded a $2.35 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study a new way of treating obesity as part of a national consortium with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

8 Dec 2010

Contrave, new weight loss pill gets FDA panel nod

A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel yesterday recommended the approval of Orexigen Therapeutics’ weight loss drug Contrave. This is the first time a weight loss drug has received the nod. The vote went 13 to 7 for Contrave’s approval and 11 to 8, with an abstention that additional studies be conducted on heart risks. Although experts agree to risks they believe the benefits outweigh the risks. Although the FDA is not compelled to go with the panel’s recommendation, it more often than not does. The FDA will deliver its verdict by Jan. 31 2011.

7 Dec 2010

32% of UAE residents could have diabetes or prediabetes by 2020

One in three United Arab Emirates (UAE) residents could have diabetes or prediabetes by the end of the decade, according to a new analysis from international health and well-being company UnitedHealth Group, released today at the World Health Care Congress Middle East meeting in Abu Dhabi.

7 Dec 2010